In an Alternate Universe
by donquichotte
Summary: Rose and the Human Doctor thought they had forever, but life throws a curveball and everything changes. An old/new friend turns up and the world shifts.   Rose, Ten II, and Jack. Warning: there is slash.
1. Chapter 1

_Everything recognisable belongs to someone else. I just play with it._

oO*Oo

Biting back a curse, Rose yanked her head back behind the relative shelter of the crumbling wall. A beam of energy whizzed past, highlighting her near miss. This was about to get very, very messy – they'd tried, God knew they'd tried, to reason with these invaders, to come to a peaceful solution, but their efforts had absolutely no discernable effect. And now, in firing at her and nearly hitting her, the vaguely reptilian hostiles had just unknowingly signed a death warrant. Nothing forced the Doctor's hand like danger to Rose.

Indeed, he was just now running to her, his expression dark, vengeful.

"Rose. Are you all right?" He checked her over frantically, his anger abating only slightly at finding her unharmed.

"Yeah. 'M fine. Got any ideas? It won't be long before the civvies start getting curious and we _don't _need non-combatants wandering around."

"I've got one, but you won't like it. I need to get in their ship, and I'll have to do it alone. Their weapons are ignatin-powered, so their ship has got to have a reservoir. It's a very volatile compound, so if I can just set off a chain reaction, it'll take out anything within about a kilometre." Stopping for breath, the Doctor ran his dark eyes over Rose's face. "You need to get everyone well away from the blast radius – there may be harmful radiation as far as three klicks from the centre. I'll be fine, I promise. I'll set a timer and be out as quickly as possible. I've still got enough Time Lord in me to deal with some measly radiation."

Rose met his grin weakly. "You're right. I don't like it. But at this point I don't see much alternative." Drawing in a breath, she drew herself up, assuming the mantle of command. "Go. And come back safe. I love you."

"I love you." He kissed her hard and fast before setting off for the ship, darting from one dubious scrap of cover to another.

"All right, team, the Doctor's got a plan, but we need to get away. At least three K, so get in the Jeeps."

"Stop it," she instructed herself sternly. "He's been running into dead-end situations since long before I was born. I just gotta make sure he has a reason to come back." She sighed heavily. "I can't cage him. Not him." She headed to the Jeeps and the small convoy sped away, leaving Rose's heart behind.

oO*Oo

Ten minutes later, Rose gnawed on her fingernails as she scanned the horizon for any sign of her Doctor. It was too early for him to be coming, she knew, but she worried all the same.

Finally, nearly another ten minutes and one ground-shaking explosion later, a stumbling figure appeared and staggered nearer. Unwilling to risk anyone inside the danger zone, Rose could do nothing but grit her teeth and clench her fists and urge him on silently.

He collapsed just inside their perimeter and, her heart breaking, Rose ordered everyone away. Radiation poisoning was not pretty. Kitted out in the one set of anti-radiation gear that every Torchwood team carried on dangerous missions, she knelt by the side of the man she loved.

"Doctor?" Her voice broke.

The Doctor's eyelids fluttered, his dark lashes moving against his unnaturally pale skin.

"Rose?" he breathed, "May have…miscalculated. Teensy bit."

"What can I do?"

"Need rest. Time. You."

"Anything, Doctor. Is it safe for people to come near?"

"Should be. I absorbed it. Not as easy as it used to be." A weak grin crossed his features.

"All right." Rose forced herself to be strong. "Rest now." She projected her voice to give orders. "He says it's safe to come near, so let's get 'im packed up and move out. I'll stay with him; Ross, you report in on the way and prep the infirmary."

As always, her faithful team obeyed implicitly. She'd never imagined herself as a leader, but she found she had a knack for inspiring people and her years with the Doctor, and then without him, had given her confidence and the competence to back it up. Now, she was one of the top field-team leaders in the whole of Torchwood.

"Stay with me. I'm not ready to lose you, yet." She whispered fiercely to the unconscious man beside her, his hand grasped in hers.

oO*Oo

Hours later, Rose stood in the infirmary, waiting for the medical report.

"Miss Tyler? I don't quite know what to make of these readings. If I'm reading this right, his DNA is changing, but into another stable form. The chances of even a neutral mutation in a case like this are…astronomical."

In another situation, Rose would have snapped at the doctor for his uncertainty, but he _was_ using a recently discovered and unfamiliar bit of technology so she held in the scathing retort.

"Can you say anything about the effects?"

Dr. Crowley shuffled nervously. "I could speculate, but in truth your guess is as good as mine."

"All right. Keep thinking, but don't lose too much time if he's stable. We've got other problems. Speaking of which, how are last week's burn victims holding up?"

As the man launched into his report, Rose let her Torchwood brain pay attention and directed her Rose brain towards the still form of the man on the bed in front of her. It was killing her to carry on like this when he was in this shape, but life went on. And so did Rose Tyler.

Didn't mean she was going to leave his side, though.

oO*Oo

"Rose. You need to get out of here for a couple of hours. Go sleep, eat, shower. Talk to Jacks."

Looking up from the laptop she had had fetched for her, Rose scowled at Pete.

"I'm not leavin' him."

"Rose, taking care of yourself for an hour is not abandoning him. Go take a shower, grab a sandwich and phone your mum. If you're good, I'll arrange for you to sleep here."

Huffing a little, Rose stood and kissed her surrogate father's cheek. "Thanks, Pete. You're a good bloke."

"I know." Pete smiled gently. "Now go."

"I'm goin', I'm goin'."

oO*Oo

After a shower, a meal and a good cry over the phone to her mum, Rose admittedly felt much better. She entered the infirmary and, as she got a glimpse of the Doctor, the good feeling vanished.

"He's changed," she wailed.

Pete rose to his feet, stowing his papers quickly, and Dr. Crowley ran over.

"What do you mean?" Pete held Rose as she fought her way toward the unresponsive man. The doctor leant over his patient and, pulling a scanner from his pocket, began running tests.

"He's different, he looks different. Just a little, but he _does_. Oh God, what if he's regenerating? We thought he couldn't but maybe it's just slower now, or –"

"Calm down Rose, and explain. He looks the same to me." Adopting a soothing tone, Pete released his adopted daughter.

"His face is a bit different, and he's more ginger." Despite her worry, Rose smiled softly. "He did want to be ginger."

"Ahem." All eyes turned to Dr. Crowley. "As far as I can determine, his genes are still mutating. The damaged sections of DNA seem to be replacing themselves with recessive genetic material. It's incredible." Sympathetically, he curbed his enthusiasm and added, "From what the instruments are detecting the process should be complete in about twenty-four hours."

"Thanks." Rose didn't tear her gaze away from the familiar-strange face before her. Could she deal with another regeneration, if that's what this was? And what did that mean for the future? Would he end up living many times her lifespan, after all?

"I guess we'll have to wait 'til tomorrow, then."


	2. Chapter 2

Anxiously, Rose paced the length of the room. Given that she was currently in the small and somewhat cluttered Torchwood med lab, it was not a particularly fulfilling activity, but she couldn't stand still. Casting another glance at the Doctor's still form, she sighed in frustration. According to Dr. Crowley, the mutation process was complete and he should be waking up very soon.

A sudden gasp caused her to whirl around. The Doctor shot upright, breathing heavily. He'd changed so much now, though he still bore a strong resemblance to her Doctor; his hair was now a vivid red and his eyes leaned towards a muddy blue. His nose was a little smaller and rounder. She processed these disparities in a fraction of a second, comparing this face to the familiar, beloved, remembered one.

"Rose?" He turned towards her, and she flew into his arms with a small cry.

"What happened?" she mumbled into his chest.

"Vestigial regenerative instinct. Ooh, new teeth _again_." The man grimaced experimentally. "Lovely."

Frowning, Rose pulled away to look into his face. "What's that mean? The first thing, I mean."

"The radiation severely damaged a good portion of my dominant DNA," He paused to shoot Rose an apologetic look. "I overestimated the limits of my biology, and it killed me, sort of. The trauma was enough to kick-start whatever regenerative instinct I have left over, but I'm not equipped for full regeneration anymore. But I do – did – have an extra set of healthy human DNA: Donna's. By absorbing the radiation, I managed to restrict the damage to the active portions, so the Time Lord biology replaced the damaged sections with the healthy recessives." He grinned. "And isn't that wizard?"

"So it's like you regenerated, but only a little? And into a human?" Rose struggled with her emotions; it was ridiculous to feel betrayed, and it was hardly constructive, but _dammit_ didn't she deserve at least a human forever with her Doctor?

"Yep."

"Will it happen again? I mean, we all thought you had a human lifespan, but if you can do this…"

"I don't think it will. After all, I hardly have another handy set of DNA. This is it for me – I got lucky once, but I'll have to be more careful from now on."

"I'd like to see that." Rose gave a weak chuckle. "You don't know the meaning of 'careful'." Sobering, she stared into his face. "But we'll be all right, won't we? We'll always be all right?"

"Of course. We made it through one regeneration, we'll make it through this."

He leaned down and pressed their lips together. It didn't feel quite right: the lips were too full, the teeth in the wrong positions, the will behind the motion a stranger. Guiltily, Rose pulled away slightly to find the Doctor (was he still the Doctor at all?) staring at her with an odd expression.

"I hate to interrupt," broke in Crowley uncomfortably, having clearly witnessed the entire scene, "but if you want to go home tonight, I'm going to have to check you over."

Unreasonably relieved, Rose pulled away from the Doctor's embrace and he turned to other man with a brittle smile. "Let's get on with it then, don't have all day."

Troubled, Rose hummed in agreement and added, "I'll just go report to Pete, and then I've got a few things to take care of. Come find me in my office when you're done here."

She left quietly, ignoring the Doctor's heavy gaze.

oO*Oo

Rose collapsed into her chair and dropped her head into her hands. This was insane. And, whatever the Doctor said, this was _not_ like his previous regeneration. Last time, though she hadn't seen it at first, the Doctor had still been the Doctor, looking out from new eyes, from a new mind. And her human Doctor had been the Doctor in every way that mattered. This was not the same; the man looking out from those blue eyes was _not _the Doctor. He was trying, acting like the Doctor acted, but Rose could tell that it was mostly an act, put on for her benefit. This man was somebody new, and she wasn't sure if she could be in love with him, too.

"Rose?" There he stood, the not-Doctor, in her doorway. "I think – we need to talk – can we go home?"

"Yeah." Rose inhaled deeply. "Yeah, let's go."

oO*Oo

Rose shifted nervously on the sofa. They'd survived the drive home, but now there were no distractions and they had to face the issue.

"Did you – when we kissed – did you - ?" The not Doctor blurted out in a garbled rush.

Rose let out a _whoosh_ of semi-relieved, semi-disappointed breath. "No. I mean, it wasn't _bad_, but it wasn't like before." A quiet noise of frustration slipped through her lips. "How could the spark just vanish? We were fine, better than fine. We were fantastic, weren't we?"

"Oh yes."

"But we can still be a team, still be best friends?" Rose's voice came out small, pleading.

"Oh, always. I just – It's like you said: the spark is gone." His hands ran through his hair angrily. Rose suddenly choked up at the familiar gesture. The enormity of the situation fell on her like a ton of bricks and she burst into sobs.

"Rose?" The not-Doctor rushed to her side and cradled her gently. "Hush, it's all right. I've got you."

"Sorry," Rose gasped, "sorry, it just hit me. He's gone. He's gone, just when I was starting believe in forever, and, just, sorry!"

"Oh, Rose. Don't apologise, not for mourning someone you love." He gripped her tighter and stroked her hair, letting her cry.

They'd somehow find a way.


	3. Chapter 3

"Jamie." The not-Doctor said it decisively, as if the name held _the_ answers. To everything.

From her position, sprawled across his lap, Rose looked up curiously. "Who's Jamie?"

"Me. I do need a name, you know."

Rose chuckled, the last few months had been hard, yes, but they'd pulled through magnificently, and were still the best of friends (though perhaps that said more about Rose and Donna's compatibility than anything), but without the romantic spark.

"You sure this time? 'Cause we need to get your paperwork sorted out, again." Rose shook her head fondly. "I swear, you're more of kid than Tony is, sometimes."

The not-D – all right, _Jamie_ pouted. "Oi! Technically, I _am_ younger than him."

Snorting a little, Rose rejoined, "But with over 900 years of memories stuffed into that big head of yours."

"I really do think I like 'Jamie', though. Reminds me of a companion I once had, brilliant man."

Rose caught her breath, pained, as the Doctor emerged, just a little.

It wasn't just for paperwork that he needed a new name; maybe she could finally manage to properly separate this new man from the one in her memories.

"All right. If you're sure. Jamie."

oO*Oo

"So then _he _says 'Is this not the customary garb of this planet?' And, I swear, he must have learned everything he knew from watching _Star Trek_ reruns. And you know what the costumes are like here…"

With a loud bark of laughter, Jamie nudged Rose with an elbow. "Go on; how'd you tell him he was totally off the mark?"

Just as she opened her mouth to answer, Rose saw something that froze her stiff. "Jamie…" she whispered, staring over his shoulder "Is that - ?"

Turning, Jamie stared, too. "Jack Harkness." He blinked and stared some more. "Not our Jack."

Rose suddenly grinned predatorily, watching newcomer wander around and chat. "Well, he seems to think he's infiltrated us. How 'bout we give him a good welcome?"

Catching on, Jamie smiled back and reached up to his communicator. "Hello there, this is Jamie Noble and I want you to send a specific intruder up to the lounge on floor 3… Yes, the attractive one." He sighed. "No, please don't take him up on that offer… Thanks."

oO*Oo

"He's probably here just to get in your knickers." Jamie grumbled.

Rose giggled. "You're hardly in a position to be jealous." But, she noticed, the tips of his ears grew a little pink and she frowned. "You have no claim on me – unless… No! You don't!" She stared. "Oh my God, you _do_!" She collapsed into hysteria as Jamie huffed.

"Want to share the joke?"

Jack Harkness had arrived. Dressed for infiltration, he sported an operative's generic black field gear, but Rose immediately noticed the odd 'watch' on his wrist.

"Not really," gasped Rose, clinging onto Jamie's arm to stay upright. Mastering herself, she held out a hand. "Rose Tyler."

"Jack Harkness."

Predictably, the (ex?) Time Agent raised it to his lips instead of shaking it and Rose rolled her eyes. And fought to keep a straight face as she saw Jamie make a surreptitious move.

As the men made their introductions, Rose steeled herself.

"So, what's a nice 51st century man like you doing 'round here?"

In a flash, Jack reached back and drew his weapon on her.

Rose found herself staring down the end of a banana into Jack's bewildered gaze.

"Now, now, no need for such dramatics." Jamie's eyes as he held the real gun to Jack's head were dark and angry. He looked more like the Doctor than he ever had before.

Slowly, Jack raised his hands. "Okay, my bad. How'd you know?"

"Aside from the fact that I at least recognize every single Torchwood employee, I happen to have known another Jack Harkness."Jamie's tone had thawed a (very) little at Jack's tractability.

"Aw, damn," cursed the other man, "have I crossed my timelines, somehow?"

"Not as far as we know." Answered Rose. "We're not from around here. Even farther that you, actually. Another universe."

"That's impossible. That kind of travel has been impossible for…eons." Despite his words, Jack seemed to consider their words.

"I used to do six impossible things before breakfast."

"You, Captain, still need to answer my first question. Why are you here?"

"Captain - ?" Jack shook his head in dismissal. "Sorry. I… I guess I'm stranded here. My manipulator is broken, so I was hoping to try and scrounge some parts."

Rose and Jamie shared a look.

"Let me see." Lowering the gun, Jamie snatched at Jack's wrist and pulled out his sonic.

As the redhead ran his device over the Vortex manipulator, Jack stared. "What is that?"

"My sonic screwdriver."

"Who looks at a screwdriver and thinks 'This could be a little more sonic'?" Jack scoffed.

In reaction to Rose's immediate laughter, Jamie assumed a wounded look.

"Why does everyone always ask that? What's wrong with a screwdriver?"

"Just having a déjà-vu moment."

Jamie huffed. "Well, this is pretty much dead, even worse than last time. Completely useless. What have you been _doing_ with this space hopper?"

"_Space hopper?_" Jack spluttered. "This was state of the art!"

"In your fifty-first century, maybe!"

"Do you have anything better?"

"Not anymore." Jamie clammed up, suddenly, and Rose laid a sympathetic had on his arm. The loss of the TARDIS was hitting Jamie almost as hard as it had the human Doctor.

"Hang on, when are you from then?"

"Never mind that. I have a proposition for you – stop smirking, not that type of proposition." Jamie ignored Rose's cheeky wink. "There's no time-travel tech in the collection. I know, because it's all in the spare bedroom in our flat." He caught Jack's startled eyes and held them. "We can get you a job here, and if you help us build our time ship, we'll take you with us when we leave."

Jack considered. "Why do you trust me? I'm an aspiring _con-man_, a Time Agency deserter. Why put you faith in me?"

"Because, when we met _our_ Jack, he tried to con us and nearly destroyed the world in 1941. Then, he became one of my best friends and a hero. He just needed something worth fighting for." Rose moved to look at the man. "So, are you in?"

"Yeah." He grinned. "You know, I think this is the start of a beautiful friendship."

Struck by a sudden thought, he turned to Jamie. "But can I please have my squareness gun back?" he asked plaintively.

oO*Oo

Getting Jack a job involved Jamie, Rose and Jack going up to the 20th floor to have tea with Director Wells. Attempting to look as harmless and friendly as possible, Jack sat watching his two new friends engage in a good gossip with the Director.

Once all the little biscuits had vanished (mostly down Jamie's throat), the Director turned to look at Jack. She stared into his eyes for a moment and he had a sudden impression of iron strength and ferocious intelligence. Releasing his eyes from her gaze, the Director nodded.

"Jamie, you take him under your wing in Special Tech. I expect weekly reports until I deem his probationary period over."

The middle-aged woman grinned at the redhead and winked, "And don't let him seduce the Department."

Apparently, he was hired.

oO*Oo

"So, how do you keep any kind of security if _that's_ your hiring techique? I mean, we needed about fifteen levels of clearance to _apply_ to the Agency."

"Oh, normally you'd need something like that, but the Director's special. She's very psychic for a human – she'd pick it up if you were corrupt. But, she has better things to do than just interview prospective employees." Rose shrugged. "She's not above taking on the odd special case, though. Especially for her two best alien experts."

"Right. Well, that's a job. Do I get floor space in a hangar for the night?" Jack joked. "Though, I'm sure I could find people willing to share until I get settled in… Any takers?"

Rose giggled and Jamie muttered irritably to himself.

Only slightly disappointed by their lack of enthusiasm, Jack turned sober. "No, but, seriously, where do I sleep? And food?"

"Well," began Rose, "we thought you'd just move in with us. That's where the ship is after all – though 'ship' is an overstatement and a half - but if you'd rather, there's a cot in my office that you could use for a while, and the mess is always open, but _I_ wouldn't want to eat there all the time."

"You'd just invite me into your home? Just like that?"

"Sure."

Jack considered: sharing a flat with two lovely (physically and otherwise) people versus kipping in an office. Hmm. Tricky choice.

"Thanks. I'd be happy to accept. I don't suppose we'd all have to share the bed, would we? Because let me just say that I wouldn't object."

Jamie shook his head disgustedly and gave Jack a gentle buffet about the head.


	4. Chapter 4

Jack Harkness had, nearly all his life, been the epitome of a modern 51st century male – athletic, attractive, clever, charming, and in possession of an extremely active libido.

Still, he thought, it was unreasonable that he should be so absurdly attracted to his two new partners in crime (or, well, partners in secrecy: he didn't _think _they were actually doing anything technically illegal).

Jamie Noble and Rose Tyler. They were a pair to stop hearts (or to at least affect certain other portions of his anatomy…)

It wasn't that he'd been digging for information (much), but Jack had come up to a dead end in his … _casual questioning_. Nobody in the close-knit Torchwood community seemed willing to divulge details about their obviously interesting history, despite Jack's most cunning application of charm, and none were more close-mouthed than the pair in question. (Perhaps evasive was a better term where Jamie was concerned; the man couldn't keep his mouth closed if he wanted to.) He'd gathered that they'd been a couple, the sort of happily-ever-after couple everyone expected to last forever, but something big had happened and they'd broken up. Not that any amount of deep, dark secrets would have stopped him from sleeping with both of them, but the twenty-first century had such backwards ideas about _fidelity_ and _monogamy_.

Despite her teasing flirtation, Rose gave off fairly clear 'unavailable' vibes, but Jamie was – different. Different from anyone in Jack's very, very wide range of experience. And, frustratingly, Jamie showed no interest in following up on any of Jack's offers, and Jack was _good_ at picking up on veiled desire.

"Penny for your thoughts."

"My thoughts are worth more than a penny, surely." Jack protested, grinning up at the blonde.

"Sorry, mate, only got a penny to spare."

"I'm sure, Miss Vitex heiress."

Rose smiled her little smile, with the tongue, and leaned over Jack to grab a handful of his popcorn.

"Discount for the lady?"

"If she insists." Jack drew breath. There were times when blunt was good, right? "Is Jamie gay or straight?"

Choking on the popcorn, Rose glared at him. Okay, so this may not have been the best moment for bluntness.

"You timed that on purpose, didn't you?"

"Actually, no. But, come on, I can't figure it out, and I'm usually spot-on!"

With a pensive expression, Rose seemed to consider.

"I'm not sure he knows. He used to be straight, when he was – Anyways, he changed and became a little bit more – I dunno. He could be either, or both."

Sensing that he might be about to get some new info, Jack pressed, "Rose, can't you tell me about the two of you? I mean, there's clearly some big, dramatic story to it all; won't you tell me? Please?"

"I don't – Not without Jamie. It's as much his story as mine. More, maybe."

Jack leaned back in his chair with a groan. He was never going to hear the story. Jamie was very free with everything but personal information.

Rose tossed a penny at his forehead and giggled as it struck and bounced off.

oO*Oo

"I'm not sure this is a good idea." Jack glanced uneasily at the mansion looming before him while Jamie sniggered in the background.

Pouting, Rose tugged on his arm. "I don't know why you're both so scared of my mum. Let's go; it's just tea."

She single-handedly shepherded both men to the front door, and kept a firm hold on both as she nudged the bell.

Jackie Tyler opened the door with Tony on her hip and appraised Jack.

"Why couldn't you've brought him home instead of ol' Big Ears? He's even prettier than in the photos." She complained.

With the feeling he was missing something, but pleased with the compliment (and curious to hear that they had pictures of him/other him), Jack grinned through Jamie's spluttering and Rose's groan and allowed himself to be ushered through the doors.

oO*Oo

"I like your mother, Rosie. She has a proper appreciation for fine male specimens like myself." He wasn't directing his words towards Jamie. Not at all.

A quiet '_hmph'_ was Jamie dignified response to that statement.

A beat of silence before Jamie couldn't resist filling it.

"I found a trans-circular dimensional parameter in the shipment from the Joskaran crash site. If we start now, we could have it functional by Tuesday. And, you know, it's weird that the Joskarans would have had anything of the sort, because they've been taking a more organic approach lately, so I'm wondering if maybe this ship was doing some business, you know, _on the side_…"

Jack sighed.


	5. Chapter 5

"The stabilizers are on-line, but they're only 33% efficient. What I wouldn't give for a spatio-temporal transistor right now…"

"I love it when you talk technical." Insert flirtatious grin here. "But I don't see _why _we need the stabilizers at all," grumbled Jack, "if we just cut out the whole matrix unit, we wouldn't have to worry about them."

Scoffing, Jamie shot Jack a pitying look. "_What_ were they teaching you about temporal physics at that Agency? Without this unit, the large-scale Vortex manipulation will overload the circuitry. And then _bye-bye_ time travelers!"

"Fine." Jack disliked having his competence questioned, but he could admit that Jamie somehow had knowledge _way_ beyond the twenty-first – hell, way beyond the fifty-first – century. And well, the other man did let Jack touch the delicate circuitry, which was more than he allowed Rose. Besides, it was fascinating to watch Jamie practically become a different man when he employed his technical expertise, though Rose's expression when he did brought the words 'kicked puppy' to mind…

Superfluous for a moment, he indulged himself in contemplation of Jamie's lovely physique. This was really getting to be a little ridiculous, actually: not only was he very attracted to the other man, but he seemed to also be losing interest in people who _weren't_ Jamie. If he let this go on much longer, he'd start getting ideas about _exclusivity_. And, just the other day, he'd been astonished to recognise _jealousy_ when the pretty new secretary had been flirting. Time was he'd have seen an opportunity, not a trespass onto his property.

"Want to come back from Raxicoricofallapatorius?" And there was Jamie, his face mere inches away from Jack's.

_Dammit._

oO*Oo

Three months into their partnership, Jack was going crazy. This thing for Jamie _wasn't going away_. Usually, he could push hopeless desire away (exhibit A: Rose Tyler), but this time it wasn't working.

He snapped during a late-night tinkering session (their ship was advancing in fits and starts, depending mostly on what parts they could pick up and how well the two of them were getting along). Rose, who usually performed the gopher tasks, was locked in negotiations for Haiti and the coast of Brazil, so they were alone and Jack was assigned fetch-and-carry duty.

As Jack leaned over to sort through a pile of circuit boards, he felt Jamie at his back.

"Did you find that para-spatial magnetic converter yet?"

Without any real conscious thought, Jack spun and pushed Jamie against the wall, kissing him hungrily. Jamie was _there_ and responding, but suddenly froze and pulled his head away.

"You don't want to start this with me, Harkness," he growled.

"Why not?" asked Jack. He was pretty sure he wanted to do this. Pretty damn sure.

Jamie's eyes swirled into dark, brooding intensity and Jack gulped. Was there anything about this man that _wasn't _attractive?

"I'm a possessive man, Harkness. And tenacious. I don't share and I don't let go. _You_ are hardly an ideal partner."

"You're afraid of _committing_?"

"Can you say I don't have reason?"

Thinking of years of _only_ Jamie, Jack surprised himself by how much he _wanted_ that life.

"You wouldn't." Jack continued, awe creeping into his tone. "I want you. Just you." Jamie's breath on his face was giving him all sorts of ideas. Really, this was unfair.

"Jack… You don't know who I am. Not really."

Jack nearly screamed in frustration. "Yes I do! You're Jamie Noble and you're ridiculous and brilliant and adorable and I'm almost in love with you!"

Jamie froze. "_What?_"

"I – I've never, but … I could fall in love with you."

"You don't know what I am, what I've done." Uncharacteristically, Jamie's voice was hard, forbidding. "I'm not really human, you know."

"You think I don't know you have some sort of crazy past? That's obvious to anyone who's ever met you. And I don't _care_ what species you are! Less than a quarter of the Agency is Pure Human. _I'm _probably a mongrel." Jack was shouting now, angry beyond logic and caught between wanting to strangle the man and wanting to pull him into another kiss.

"I'm a cross between human and Time Lord, born in the middle of a war to commit genocide. I was meant to be Rose's forever, her consolation prize, but I changed because I got arrogant and now I want _you._"

"So this is about Rose?" Suddenly, Jack felt a surge of jealousy – they weren't together anymore, but what if…?

"No! It's about me! How can you say you could love me? I'm _broken_."

"Bullshit. You're a coward."

"Yes, I am but I'm also dangerous. I could destroy the world without a second thought, if I was angry enough."

"So let me keep you happy."

"And if you die? If you get hurt? I could tear the world apart before I even realised."

"If you don't want this, just say it. Don't keep making these excuses." Jack felt bitter ice creep into his tone. If this is what emotions did, he'd been right to avoid them. Rejection hurt.

"I want – I haven't since…"

"What do you want, Jamie?" Jack pinned the man with his eyes, willing an answer.

"You." The word came out in a sigh, a surrender.

Jack swooped forwards catch Jamie's lips again.

Okay, so emotions maybe weren't that bad, after all.

oO*Oo

When Rose walked in on her two best mates snogging each other senseless, she greeted the sight with a howl of triumphant laughter, which wasn't quite the reaction either of the men was expecting.

"I knew it!" she gasped, "I knew it! And, oh God, imagine if _he _knew – " She abruptly broke off and her laughter evaporated. Jamie immediately wrapped her in a hug that Jack quickly joined.

Group hug finished, he spoke up. "Guys, I get that this is some sensitive topic, but I'd really like to hear this story."

The pair exchanged one of their speaking glances.

"Well, it began in another universe, when an impossible, wonderful man called the Doctor saved a shop-girl from some mannequins…"

oO*Oo

Though there was initially some surprise around Torchwood when rumours got out (and were confirmed), the Torchwood crew, by necessity was an open-minded bunch and life fell into an easy pattern.

Jack, waking nearly every morning curled around a beautiful, wonderful man, didn't think he'd ever felt so content in his life.


	6. Chapter 6

**Two Years Later…**

"That should do it. If I've calculated right, the lights should come on in three…two…one." The lights on the device that was the foundation of their ship lit up.

Grinning madly, Jamie tossed his sonic in the air, caught it neatly, and patted the console happily.

"That means the mechanism should be working. It's no TARDIS, but it should work."

Jack leaned in to kiss his lover and Rose squealed happily, allowing them a moment before grabbing them into a giant hug.

"So what next?" Jack rested his chin on Jamie's shoulder and wrapped his arms around the other man's waist.

"We need to design the hull. Once we have a structure, I can get the relative dimensions going."

"So size isn't a major concern?"

"Nope, though there's a minimum size of about 16 square feet of base and, oh, eight feet tall. The important thing is really hull integrity."

"Will it look like the TARDIS?" Rose bounced a little.

"Ah, no. The material the TARDIS' hull doesn't exist here. And we can't have a Vortex ship made of wood."

"Probably best," Rose sighed. "New start an' all."

"So suggestions, anyone?"

And the brainstorming began.

oO*Oo

"Oof. We need a crane. Or some of those magna-clamp things, like at Canary Wharf."

Out of necessity, they'd had to move into the building's basement, relying on a heavy-duty perception filter to keep their secret.

"Almost there."

They leaned the heavy sheeting against a wall and stood panting for a moment in the dim light of the cavernous room. Sharing a glance they set to work. Rose donned a mask and gloves and began cutting the sheeting to the proper sizes and shapes using a cutting torch that glowed purple and shot off green sparks. Pulling on his own gloves, Jack began shifting her work towards its proper place. Jamie, brandishing the sonic, climbed around the framing that was already in place, attaching wires and placing switches.

They only had a few hours every night when they dared assure their privacy by locking the door with the sonic, so they worked like maniacs when they got the chance.

The clang of metal, the hissing of the torch and the screwdriver's whirring, punctuated by comments, questions and Jaime's constant chatter, filled the air as the trio built the future in the dead of night.

oO*Oo

Rose wiped her hands on her old jeans, now tattered and grease-stained, and surveyed their handiwork.

The ship looked… rough, unfinished, but lovely all the same. She was sort of a box, with rounded corners and a gracefully arched roof. The colour was a dull grey, but Rose assumed that they could paint it later.

Drawing out the sonic pen that Jamie had made her, she unlocked the door and ducked into the console room. Now that Jamie had installed his relative dimensions (sacrificing three coat pockets for the vital components), they could all three fit completely comfortably. Though the ship wasn't as big inside as the TARDIS, in addition to the console room, there were three bedrooms (one for Rose, one for the couple, and one spare), a wardrobe room, a kitchen, a laundry room, a library, an infirmary and three bathrooms. They'd had to come clean to the Director last year, when the scale of their pilfering couldn't be hidden any longer. The formidable woman had been unsurprised, had wished them luck, and had granted them access to a huge fraction of Torchwood's resources.

Rose checked to see that the lights on the console were all green before nodding to herself and writing a log of her work and her observations on the pad of paper hanging on the door.

They were nearing the maiden voyage, and with every day, they all three felt the tense excitement mount. They would be free soon.

oO*Oo

"Where are we gonna go first?" Rose bounced excitedly in her chair as Jamie marked up a schematic.

"Hmmm? Oh, I thought we'd swing by the 51st century, take Jack home –"

"_What!_" Jack leapt furiously to his feet, causing both his friends to stare curiously. "You're just going to drop me off home? After two years, you're just –"

It was Jamie's turn to knock over his chair in haste. In two strides, the redhead had crossed the distance between them. Seizing Jack's face in his hands, he crashed their lips together briefly before pulling back slightly. "I didn't mean 'drop Jack off home'. I meant 'let Jack collect his belongings, see some old friends, make arrangements'. You're not getting rid of me, Harkness."

"Good," sighed Jack, anger draining away. "That's good." He leaned forwards to kiss Jamie gently.

Rose cleared her throat, knowing from experience that if she let this continue too long, she'd be a third wheel all night. The pair ignored her hint, so she sighed and grabbed her bag before heading out to her mum's house for the night.

oO*Oo

"Mum, we have something to tell you."

Jackie narrowed her eyes suspiciously; Rose and her boys had been oddly tense these past few weeks.

"You're not pregnant, are you?"

"No! God, no." Rose sounded sufficiently shocked to ease Jackie's fears on that front.

"We've been building a ship. A time/space ship, and she's ready for her first voyage."

"So you're leaving again? Off to the stars with these lunatics?"

"Mum, you know that we all feel… trapped here. Torchwood is great, but we got used to more. We're going, whatever you say, but I'd rather it be with your blessing."

Jackie sighed. "Well, I suppose that you're all grown up now." Her demeanour turned fierce. "Just you promise me two things: try to stay safe, all of you, and, Rose, if you ever find a way back, you _take it_. I have my life here now, but you've never fully settled in. So if you can find him again, you go with him, and be happy."

Tears welling in her eyes, Rose flung herself into her mother's arms. "Oh, Mum."

"I love you, Rose, and I've seen how this life is suffocating you. You'll always be my daughter, but you don't need me anymore, my brave girl."

"I love you too, Mum. So much. Thank you."

oO*Oo

The day had come, the checkmarks on Jamie's calendar edging slowly closer to the circled date until it had arrived.

Rose was flicking switches when she froze and gasped.

"We haven't named her! She needs a name," Rose insisted.

"What kind of name?"

"I dunno… like something fitting. What she means to us."

"Freedom." Jack said it quietly, but the word fell into a ready silence.

"Yeah." Rose tested the word. "I like it."

"To _Freedom_," Jamie toasted.

"To _Freedom," _echoed the other two.

"Would be better with hypervodka." Jack continued mournfully.

Stealing a playful kiss, Jamie bounded past Jack and took up his station.

"Ready for takeoff?"

"Good to go, sir."

"Aye Captain."

"Then on my mark: three, two, one, mark!"

They initiated the take off procedure and the ship called 'freedom' vanished silently from the basement of a London building.


End file.
